Am Dienstag, 14. Februar 2006 18:06 schrieb Marcus Meissner: > > Several modules will be gone from the shipping media. > > There will be an interface between 3rd party vendors and Novell to > provide kernel modules (in the KMP style described there), making it > easy for those 3rd party vendors to build modules. > > They can be offered by those vendors as easily installable resource > (RPMs). > > Nothing is stopping normal packagers (like the packman guys, or who > ever) to not just also offer kernel modules in this way. > > I understand (don't know for sure) that we are working with NVIDIA > and ATI to make downloading their drivers possible this way. > > This is btw one reason for the packagemanager changes, that this > package installation from multiple external sites is possible.
Hmm, how do you download something, if the e.g. AVM DSL/ISDN Combo Card driver is missing (like it's the situation here), and that's the only way to internet? Sure, hopefully you already ordered the big fat red warning sticker for the boxed product which explains, that things which just worked before, won't do anymore! While I understand SUSE/NOVELLs standpoint concerning nongpl modules/packages, I also see, that you're in fact loosing a unique selling proposition, like Sven Schmidt noted by imposing a chicken/egg problem to your users, which can only be circumvented, if carefully planning an install/upgrade process. As a consequence, a bulk of reasons to choose SUSE Linux as preferred OS and to recommend that to customers is lost, since you enqueue yourself in the broad range of arbitrary LINUX Products without outstanding differences and continously loosing on the user friendliness front. Yes, I feel kind of bitterness, since I was responsible for a couple of XYZ Linux to SUSE Linux (9.3) server transitions in the last few month exactly because the avm drivers are included. The main reason was, that this critical part has to be recompiled on kernel updates, which isn't something, I can expect from those customers. I really hope, that SUSE get the package manager - before 10.1 release - to the point, where it prevents kernel updates, unless external kernel modules, which are tagged as critical for it's proper operation, are available. Otherwise, automatic updates cannot work, which is the real selling point here.. Even if I'm not in a position to comment the way, this decision was made, but it's bad style to do it very shortly before a release - actively preventing concerned parties to catch up / work around the newly imposed issues. Really bad style. Pete --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] For additional commands, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
